1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates in general to equipment for filling containers, and more particularly, to a defoamer assembly for use with a filler. The disclosure is additionally directed to a method of use of a defoamer assembly.
2. Background Art
The filling of bottles and the like with a flowable material is well known in the art. Typically, a filler is provided that includes a rotating filler bowl. The filler bowl includes a plurality of valves extending therefrom. As the filler bowl rotates, the valves are coupled to containers, and selectively activated to dispense flowable material from the filler bowl into the containers. The containers are sequentially fed into the filler, filled, capped and then removed from the filling equipment.
As the filler bowl rotates, and the valves are selectively actuated, the flowable material becomes agitated. In many instances (such as with milk or cranberry juice, for example), foam builds up within the filler bowl. Eventually, the foam extends over the top of the filler bowl and begins to run down the sides of the filler bowl. Continued operation results in the foam reaching the filler valves. This can lead to complications such as impediment to operation, damage to the filler or the containers to be filled and/or contamination, to name a few.
In many instances, the filler is shut down and the foam is cleaned from the filler. Problematically, a stoppage of the filler reduces efficiency and the output of the filler. In some instances once the filler is cleaned, the foam accumulates at a quicker rate. Problematically, over the course of a day, the filler can be stopped multiple times for cleaning. It is not uncommon to have a filler shut down every hour for cleaning due to the accumulation of foam.